Happily Ever After
by Kristen3
Summary: After reading David fairytales, Daphne starts to think about happy endings, and how she wants her son to believe in them. But a frightening dream shows her a world devoid of hope or happiness. One-shot. Inspired by the TV Show "Once Upon a Time." Written for Anika (BaronessBlxen).


**Author's Note: **This is dedicated to Anika (**BaronessBlixen**), because she's partly responsible for my newfound obsession with _Once Upon a Time_. I haven't watched enough of that show to write about it – yet, but in the meantime, I came up w/ an N/D story that could work as a sort of crossover. I didn't list it as such because you don't have to watch OUAT to understand the story. However, if you have, you'll recognize a certain resident of Storybrooke here, even if he's not mentioned by name! ;)

"_And they all lived happily ever after,"_ Daphne read to her sleeping son. Sure, David was just a baby, but Daphne couldn't resist this book of fairytales. Even if he couldn't understand the words yet, Daphne insisted on telling him these stories. She wanted him to grow up believing that the world was a good place. Her life with Niles was nothing short of a fairytale. But Daphne also knew that in the real world, not all stories end happily. Martin had lost his beloved Hester well before her time. While he was now happy with Ronee, there was clearly a void in his life that would never be completely filled.

But Daphne forced these thoughts aside. For as long as possible, she wanted to make sure her son kept his faith and innocence. That was why she wanted him to learn about Cinderella, and how her glass slipper led to her happily-ever-after. Even after all these years, Daphne still loved the story, and there was no question as to why.

Daphne had now left the nursery and made her way down the hall to the room she shared with Niles. She was unsurprised to find it already dark, and her husband sound asleep. His patient load had increased dramatically lately. His work was taking a huge toll on the family. Not only was he away from home more than usual, but when he was there, his mind was still with his troubled patients. Daphne wanted to help him, but she knew there was nothing she could do. It was all part of being a psychiatrist, he'd told her many times. Daphne crawled into bed beside him, kissing his cheek while he slept. "Goodnight, Niles. Thank you for giving me me happy ending."

Before long, she'd drifted off to sleep. But the next thing she knew, she was in a totally different place. She was standing on a street corner, although it definitely wasn't any in Seattle. Daphne looked around, and found herself in what appeared to be a small, quaint New England town. Before she could wonder how she'd gotten there, she began to notice the people. They walked all over the place, each with the same gloomy, depressed expression. Their moods seemed to match the weather; the sky was gray, and rain looked like a near certainty.

Daphne wondered how it was possible for an entire town to be like this. Seattle certainly had its share of bad weather, and it did put people in a bad mood. But that didn't mean people walked around like zombies, as these people appeared to. Daphne knew that something was terribly wrong, and she want straight into caretaker mode. She managed to grab the arm of a passing woman. "Are you all right?" she asked the stranger.

"Yes. I'm all right," the woman answered. She seemed rather annoyed by the question.

"Well, if you don't mind my asking, why is everyone around here so sad?"

"It's just how we are," the woman responded. "Always been that way."

"Always?" Daphne asked, in shock. "Haven't you ever been happy?"

The question was met with thoughtful silence at first. "I think I might've been, once," the woman finally said. "But it was a long time ago." With that, the strange woman walked off, leaving Daphne even more confused than ever.

She stopped several more residents of this odd town, and had similar conversations. Everyone said that they vaguely recalled having been happy once, but weren't quite sure why it had ended. How could a person forget every single happy memory they'd ever had? But then Daphne tried to remember her own past, and it felt very fuzzy. She remembered going to a ball with a handsome man, but couldn't remember his name or how they knew each other. She thought she'd worn a special dress for the occasion, but she wasn't sure if it had been red or blue, or what. Now that was odd, because Daphne was sure she'd been able to recall the memory vividly before she came here.

Just then, she noticed a man who seemed different from all the others here. His skin seemed to be a strange grayish-green color, and he actually seemed to be smiling to himself a bit. Daphne took a deep breath and approached him. "Excuse me, but can you tell me what's happened to everyone here? Why do they all look so hopeless?"

"It's very simple, dearie," the man answered, his grin now becoming more evident. "Their happy endings have been stolen."

Suddenly, Daphne sat bolt upright in bed.

"Daphne, my love, what is it?" Niles' arms were around her at once. "My God, you're shaking!"

"I had a dream, Niles. It was awful!"

Niles pulled her close, stroking her back and kissing her hair. "It's all right, I'm here. You're safe now."

When she began to regain a bit of calm, Daphne told him what she remembered. "I was in this strange town. All of the people looked so sad and hopeless. I kept asking them what was wrong, but no one knew. They just said they'd always been like that. They could barely even recall ever being happy. And then the worst part was, I couldn't remember meself! I couldn't remember the Snow Ball!" She was crying now.

"Oh, Daphne, you know you'd never forget that night. That red dress – I can still see you in it." He smiled, hoping it would make her feel better.

"I waited so long to love you, to find me happy ending. I couldn't bear the thought of losing all of it."

"Daphne, it was only a dream. Things like that just don't happen. And if anybody ever tried to make you forget about me, well, I just wouldn't let it happen. No matter what."

She stared into his eyes for a long moment, losing herself in the love she saw there. "I just want...I just want David to believe in happy endings," she finally whispered.

"He will, Daphne. How can he not, when we tell him that we found ours? Sure, life doesn't always work out the way you plan, but sometimes, it ends up being _better_ than you planned. I'm sure David will see that as he grows up."

Daphne kissed her husband. "Better than you planed." She smiled."I like that."

"I'm glad," Niles said. "Now, go back to sleep. I know you must be exhausted."

No sooner had Niles spoken than Daphne realized how right he was. She let herself relax, falling back onto the pillow. "Life turns out...better than we planned," she whispered just before drifting off.

Niles' heart melted at the sight of her lying there so peacefully. There was an unmistakable smile on her face. He kissed her cheek. "You're my happy ending."

**The End**


End file.
